Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Molson Coors Canada announced today the creation of a new stand-alone division, the Six Pints Specialty Beer Company. Craft and specialty beer represent the fastest growing segment of the Canadian beer industry. To better participate in this segment, Molson Coors Canada acquired the Creemore Springs Brewing Company in 2005. Creemore then acquired the Granville Island Brewing Company in 2009. The establishment of the Six Pints Speciality Beer Company signals a further step in Molson Coors Canada's ongoing commitment to participating in this growing segment. The new division will be led by industry veteran Ian Freedman, who has been with Molson in a variety of senior positions since 2002.

"The skills and the business model required to be successful in seeding, nurturing and growing specialty beer brands is very different from those required to build powerhouse brands like Coors Light and Molson Canadian," said new Six Pints President, Ian Freedman. "And Six Pints will provide these additional capabilities, along with assets and people dedicated to serving the unique needs of consumers and customers in the specialty and craft category."

Six Pints' core business will focus on providing a menu of tailored beer and business solutions to customers, including category engagement through education, training, industry and consumer insights, product knowledge and quality standards. It will offer a compelling portfolio of craft and import beers, built on the foundation of two historic craft brands, Creemore Springs and Granville Island. Eventually, Six Pints will represent a wider selection of specialty beers from Canada and abroad that maintain the high standards of distinction set by Creemore and Granville.

"We are on the verge of a beer renaissance in Canada. Beer lovers across the country are taking their drinking occasions into exciting, new territory with specialty and craft beers," said Freedman. "Six Pints Specialty Beer Company is here to champion this renaissance with a single-minded mission: To create beer enthusiasts -and encourage people to be passionate about beer through the efforts of our brands."

The brands in the Six Pints portfolio, and the company itself, will operate separately from Molson Coors and develop their own unique strategies around price, product, distribution and promotion.

The company's initial priorities are to build a dynamic internal beer culture based on authentic beer reverence. Once the core team is in place, the company will turn its attention to developing strong national sales capabilities, in order to help expand Creemore and Granville geographically into new markets across Canada.

"Specialty and craft brewers are adding to the category in profound ways and opening up a world of opportunities to turn consumers into beer advocates," said Freedman. "The Six Pints Specialty Beer Company will help lead that wave of change, celebrating distinctive beer experiences and old world craft."

WHY THE NAME SIX PINTS?

"Six Pints" is a tip-of-the-hat to a lesser-known bit of Canadian trivia. In the late 1700's, British soldiers stationed in what would eventually become Canada were entitled to six pints of beer per day as part of their compensation. Beer has been part of our constitution since before this country had one. Not surprisingly, it was eventually decided that paying soldiers with beer might not be the best idea. But to this day, we're a nation that has never stopped loving our beer.